A pretty propaganda film

James Cameron has made a very odd film here. There is no doubt it's beautiful to look at, but is it a documentary? For one thing, it's rather short on information concerning some of the creatures the crew encounters that members of the audience would really like to know about. Early in the theatrical version we are shown a creature that looks like a floating diaphanous veil that all we hear about is that the scientist observing it doesn't know what it is. It seems odd as it is a well known type of creature, a small marine chordate known as an appendicularian that exudes a bubble-like mucus veil in which it traps plankton. Kind of difficult to believe that this particular explorer didn't do his basic home work.
The liberal use of special effects in the underwater sequences, for instance the superimposition of lava where formerly an eruption had occured, is peculiar in a documentary context, some might say dishonest. I personally wouldn't go so far, but it is somewhat suspect.
This movie is about exploration, rather that the results of exploration and is also something of a propaganda film for space exploration as well. It is hard not to notice what an attractive group of young scientists that Mr. Cameron assembled for this mission. I suppose they all had screen tests and each one secretly nurtures the hope that they may be the next Carl Sagan.
I guess it's not really about the intellectual content. It's pretty, it's 3D and it sells its agenda.

fnord